A Ship in Need

Ray rushed to the control panel, brought up a cluster of windows, and began hammering on the keyboard, mumbling to himself.

Close on his heels, Marlin clung to the biggest power module. "Why in ocean hasn't this can bailed us out of here yet?"

The ship rocked sideways, blown by a turtle rushing past. Outside was mayhem: enormous animals fleeing in every direction, paying no attention to their surroundings, sending massive waves through the water. Its sharp eyes glistening, the megaloshark circled, avoiding the speeding giants while patiently waiting for the weakest link to reveal itself. The submarine tilted in the opposite direction.

"Hey! We're getting squashed!"

"I'm on it," Ray gritted through his teeth.

"This shit is supposed to be automatic. Get this rusted clunker fixed."

"It's not broken."

The submarine lurched, scraping against a rocky ridge with a groan.

"Spare me your old man sympathy for this wreck. A life-preserving part of it is obviously broken!"

"I turned it off."

Mouth agape, Marlin tilted his head, his eyes crossing, trying to process what he'd just heard.

"You got a jellyfish for a brain?"

"Can't simply trust those automatic systems. Who knows what they'll decide to do?"

"Unlike you, an algorithm has logic. I'll pick it over you every time."

"Marlin, you've just made a grown man cry! What do you have to say for-"

A roaring shudder went through the hull, accompanied by a resonate bang. They were sent flying, spinning in a nauseating whirl, until the hard, jagged seamount stopped their tumble.

"Great. I'm a walking bruise thanks to you," Marlin sat up and kicked the wall.

"Glad you're alright," sprawled on the floor, Ray rubbed his knee before crawling towards the common cabin. "Angie? Silky? How are your aquariums holding?"

"Silky?! That thing's bad luck. Don't name it, throw it out."

"Bless the currents — they're both intact."

"Your priorities are messed up. We stopped moving," Marlin tried to stand up, winced, and slacked back into a puddle on the floor.

"The ship will be perfectly fine without me for another ten minutes, no, scratch that, ten million years. These guys won't last a minute without water."

"And me? At this rate, I'll keel over first if you keep messing with the systems."

"This discussion can also wait. I'll access the damage first."

"Where to start? I can't stand up," Marlin swayed his arms helplessly, then pointed at one of them. "And here, look how purple the bruise is! Wow, there's another one. I confidently access the damages to cost you a shit ton!"

Ray sighed. "I wasn't talking about you. But no worries, I have a salve just for such an occasion. We can bathe you in it for good measure."

"Yack! Salve yourself. I require more eel on my plate and more pillows on my bunk."

"With looming ship repairs and a deduction for a dead whale, luxuries are out of reach for us," Ray checked the backside of the control panel, bringing it back online.

"What now? We can't make it to the closest port and will rot here at the bottom of the ocean!?" Marlin jumped up, skidding close to Ray, shaking him by his sleeve.

"Temper your excitement. I won't let our situation get that 'cool'."

"Joy killer," the boy plopped on the floor.

"It doesn't look like we'll have a smooth sailing ahead of us. A turbine's busted."

"Sub crasher."

"With only one operational turbine, the balance is off. We can limp along like this, but every bump will jolt us and the system," Ray opened additional windows, redistributed some numbers, then shook his head. "That's not a permanent solution anyway. Considering the weight of our ship, the engine will overheat and burn within a week, leaving us completely immobile."

"Sleep inducer," Marlin paid little attention, scratching and pinching his bruises. "The moral of the story? We have enough power to reach a port? Or do we di-i-i-i-e?"

"No-no, that won't be necessary. I should be able to fix it myself, replace a couple parts, clean it up. How bad can it be?"

"You've already tried to pilot this thing yourself. Drop it! Get a mechanic."

"I'll go take a look, tinker with the turbine. It can't hurt."

"Oh, it'll hurt all right when I lose my patience right this moment and tinker you with a turbine."

"How about you go help me instead?" Ray extended his arm with a smile.

"Do I look like the moron who got us squashed by angry turtles? No, so I won't lift a finger," Marlin swatted Ray's hand away. "You're wasting time. Hurry and get us a pro."

"Not a good idea. Let's figure it out on our own."

"What, now you don't trust mechanics? Weren't you in a hurry to catch up to your sis?"

Ray flinched, clenching his fists. "That's not... It's complicated..."

"It's damn simple. Start the engine and route us to the nearest port."

***

They felt every water particle on the way to Anchor’s Reach. The submarine's speed was set painfully slow in order not to overheat their only remaining turbine. After an unending day of jerky travel, Ray's steps wobbled even on the solid ground, and Marlin didn't skip down a single street.

"We've already questioned everyone. Let's pick a mechanic and go."

"Why compromise for anything that's not a perfect match? And you can't find one after just a dozen people. Go wait in the ship."

Marlin's stomach flipped. "Nope. I'm not looking at those walls again."

"You see, we're actually enjoying a walk. Finding a mechanic is a side-quest."

Anchor’s Reach was a bustling yet unusually cozy hub. Beneath colorful hanging seagrasses, the houses were adorned with simple geometric terracotta decorations. The air felt warm, sweetened by fish pie and algae syrup aromas. They strolled down a busy street for a while before Ray approached a middle-aged, smiling woman carrying a dented bucket of oil.

"Need a hand?" Ray beamed a grin and gestured at her burden.

"Oh, it's alright. I'll consider this my little morning exercise," she chuckled without dropping the pace.

"Now we know your secret for staying so fit and healthy. Would you mind sharing some advice? Our ship suddenly went out of order around these waters, and we have no idea where to turn to. Any place you can recommend?"

"We have plenty of excellent repair shops. There's that father-and-son spot, very well-known," she plopped the bucket on the ground before pausing, deep in thought, arms akimbo. "But, personally, I'd like to suggest Koi. She's such a sweet girl. And would really appreciate another work order."

"Sounds like you care a lot about her."

"It's no secret she can use any money she can get. But the competition here," she sighed with a shrug. "Koi is a competent mechanic. I wouldn't have brought her up otherwise."

After getting a detailed explanation on how to find her shop, Ray thanked the lady and strode off, a smile crinkling in the corners of his eyes.

"No way! You weren't just playing a polite dolt? We're really going there. Another charity project?" Marlin eyed him with a sour expression.

"On the contrary, I'm all self-interest."

"Let's guess. She's desperate for money. So you plan on talking down the price. Pfft, why bother? These hands can get any pocket change we're short of," he jumped in front of Ray and, splaying his fingers, wriggled them directly in his face.

"Wrong again," he lightly flicked Marlin on the forehead and walked around him. "I'll make sure to offer a fee she wouldn't want to pass up. With any luck, we won't need your fingers to pay it off."

Finding the place was easy. It was a small, neat garage with no windows, tools lining every inch of the wall, a heap of scrap to the side of a wide open entryway. A short woman in a rough green apron and protective goggles was sitting cross-legged, soldering some contraption. Noticing them, she slowly unfolded from the floor to shuffle in their direction, brushing away her brown hair with the back of her mechanical hand, leaving dark smudges on her face.

"Hey, you must be Koi," Ray extended his arm for a handshake. "Our ship needs repairs. Are you free for a job?"

"Indeed I am. What's the actual problem?"

"A giant flathead turtle rammed into the submarine."

"Aa-ha, turtle. Are you planning for the costs to be covered by insurance?" she deadpanned.

"No, really, the turtle did it. The shark came and-" he exhaled deeply and shook his head. "You know what, never mind. There was a collision and one of the turbines got wrecked. How long the repairs might take?"

"It shouldn't be too bad, if you managed to make it to this port, but at least a full two days of work. If there's no damage to other systems. Also depends on the model. Give me the ship ID, and I might provide a better estimate."

"That won't happen. How about you keep this off the books and I pay double?"